Town Commission
Regular Meeting
The Town Commission of the Town
of Melbourne Beach, Florida met in regular session on
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In attendance were Mayor William Stacey, Vice-Mayor Sandy Wilson, and Commissioners Steve Walters and Donnie Price. Also present were Town Manager Jim Bursick, Interim Town Attorney Gary Sack, and Town Clerk Patricia Burke. Commissioner Paul Guglietta was absent.
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Mayor Stacey called the meeting to order and offered the invocation. The entire assembly recited the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
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Changes to the Agenda
The Town Commission agreed to
recognize Fire Chief Jim Hunter at this time. Mayor Stacey presented Fire Chief
Hunter with an engraved plaque expressing appreciation for his contributions to
Mayor Stacey announced, with
regret, that Town Clerk Burke submitted her resignation effective
As to other changes to the agenda, Town Manager Bursick asked that New Business Item E, being award of bid for shoreline restoration, be deferred to the next regular meeting. It was not ready to go forward at this time.
Commissioner Walters requested that Resolution No. 2006-09 supporting the Stolen Valor Act be deferred to the Commission’s regular meeting in August. There was no objection. He also felt that Commissioner Guglietta’s written apology for the use of inappropriate language at the last meeting should be deferred as he was not in attendance. This item remained on the agenda under New Business.
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Approval of Minutes
Vice-Mayor Wilson moved to
approve the minutes of special meeting
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Consent Agenda
Commissioner Price moved to approve both consent items in accordance
with the following recommendations:
A. Site plan review for new construction of a single-family
residence at
B. Special Events Permit application to allow a dog wash on
Commissioner Walters seconded the motion and it carried on an all yes
vote.
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Presentations by Special Guests
The Town Commission welcomed State
Representative Mitch Needelman who provided an update on the recent legislative
session. Representative Needelmen discussed increased funding for education in
Brevard County, expansion of the Kid Care insurance program, nursing
home/long-term care improvements, expansion of homestead exemption for senior
citizens, tax holidays, repeal of intangible tax, juvenile justice
accountability, funding for Indian River Lagoon clean-up, beach restoration,
Interstate 95 widening, etc. It was his privilege to serve the citizens of
Representative Needelmen responded to questions from Commissioner Price concerning offshore dumping of sewage, erosion of local government authority, and oversight of home owners’ insurance and utility costs.
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Non-Scheduled Citizen Comments
Tom Shaw expressed his feeling
that the Town Commission continued to ignore substantive policy issues facing
Bill Hoskovic stated that
municipal parking lot lights were coming on at
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Boards and Committees
The only item was an appointment
to the Town’s Board of Adjustment for a term expiring
Commissioner Walters moved to reappoint Gail Gowdy for the remainder of
her unexpired term (through
During discussion, Commissioner Price stated his objection to Ms. Gowdy serving on both boards, particularly given the Attorney General’s opinion. There were other applicants for the position and he felt that they should be given consideration. While he would not support Ms. Gowdy’s reappointment to the Board of Adjustment, he would consider her for the Planning and Zoning Board if she so chose. Commissioner Walters felt that Ms. Gowdy was strict in interpreting and enforcing the Town’s Code and he supported her reappointment to the Board of Adjustment. Vice-Mayor Wilson added that she knew the Code of Ordinances and was willing to serve. Mayor Stacey agreed.
The motion to reappoint Gail
Gowdy to the Board of Adjustment carried with Commissioner Price voting no.
Commissioner Walters then moved that Charles Tenant be moved to the
Alternate #1 position. Vice-Mayor Wilson seconded the motion and it carried
unanimously.
As to the second alternate position, commission members ranked the remaining applicants. Town Clerk Burke announced the totals. Commissioner Walters moved to appoint Lou Failla to the Alternate #2 position. Vice-Mayor Wilson seconded the motion and it carried on an all yes vote.
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Marty Remark, Chairman of the
Historic Preservation Board, provided an update. She announced that the
Melbourne Beach Women’s Club recently disbanded after over 80 years of
existence. Many of the club’s historic artifacts were donated to the town. In
liquidating its treasury, the club donated $400 to the Town’s Historic
Preservation Board for its purposes. She suggested that these funds be used to
erect a piling from the original
As an aside, Mayor Stacey mentioned that he was trying to get a framed photograph of the former town clerk, Cindy Masny, to display in the Masny Community Room of City Hall.
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Chairman Cindy Schuster reported
on recent activities of the Melbourne Beach Parks Board. She distributed an
information packet on telescope viewers which the Board proposed be located at
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Public Hearings
Town Attorney Sack read ORDINANCE NO. 2006-06 OF THE TOWN OF MELBOURNE BEACH AMENDING ARTICLE VII, SECTION 7A-13(c) AND (f)(2) AND (3) OF THE TOWN OF MELBOURNE BEACH CODE OF ORDINANCES BY DELETING SAID SECTIONS AND SUBSTITUTING NEW PROVISIONS THEREFORE; PROVIDING FOR THE PLANNING OFFICIAL TO REVIEW FOR APPROVAL AND RECOMMENDATIONS ALL SITE PLANS FOR COMPLIANCE WITH HEIGHT AND SETBACK REQUIREMENTS AND TO THE PROVISIONS OF 7A-59, ALL OTHER CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS AND ALL OTHER PROVISIONS OF THE TOWN OF MELBOURNE BEACH CODE OF ORDINANCES AND THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR REPEAL OF ORDINANCES OR PARTS OF ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT HEREWITH; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE CODE OF ORDINANCES; PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE the second time by title only.
Vice-Mayor Wilson moved to adopt Ordinance No. 2006-06 as presented. Commissioner Walters seconded the motion. The Vice-Mayor explained that this ordinance provided that all residential and commercial site plans were to be reviewed by the planning official to determine compliance with the Town’s Land Development Code, specifically height and setback regulations, and deleting the requirement that all residential site plans were to be reviewed by the Planning and Zoning Board. The Planning and Zoning Board would continue to review commercial site plans and all site plans, both residential and commercial, would receive final approval from the Town Commission. The Town recently engaged the services of a professional planner that was able to perform plan review and thus take this responsibility off of the Planning and Zoning Board. Applicants paid a site plan review fee to offset the cost of his services.
Mayor Stacey opened the public
hearing. Ms. Nalle (
The motion to adopt Ordinance No. 2006-06 carried unanimously.
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Attorney Sack read ORDINANCE NO. 2006-07 OF THE TOWN OF MELBOURNE BEACH, BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA, REGULATING PEDDLERS, ITINERANT MERCHANTS, INTINERANT FOOD VENDORS, AND SOLICITORS, REGULATING THE USE OF PROPERTY BY PEDDLERS, ITINERANT MERCHANTS, ITINERANT FOOD VENDORS, AND SOLICITORS, PROVIDING FINDINGS, PROVIDING DEFINITIONS, PROVIDING EXCEPTIONS; PROVIDING FOR THE REPEAL OF ORDINANCES OR PARTS OF ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT HEREWITH, PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE, PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE TOWN OF MELBOURNE BEACH, FLORIDA CODE OF ORDINANCES the first time by title only.
Commissioner Price moved to table this ordinance until a full commission was in attendance. His motion died for lack of a second.
Vice-Mayor Wilson sponsored this legislation. He stated that the Town Commission received complaints about the repeated renewal of an itinerant merchant license for a fixed location. Such licenses were issued for 90 days and envisioned a vendor that moved around. In this particular case, rather than a 90-day usage, there had been nearly two years of continuous renewals. Yet there was nothing in the Town’s current ordinance that prohibited renewals. The proposed ordinance limited the number of times that an itinerant merchant license could be renewed. In his opinion, the hotdog vendor was not operating as an itinerant merchant.
Due to a loss of meeting decorum, Mayor Stacey called for a ten-minute recess at this time.
Upon reconvening, discussion continued. Town Manager Bursick advised that the Planning and Zoning Board reviewed this ordinance and recommended removal of language that would require that land be zoned for a particular purpose and a site plan approved. This action concerned him because it eliminated a significant regulatory need. The Town Manager explained that Bruce Black was originally issued an itinerant merchant license for his hotdog vending business because there was no other classification that seemed to fit. An itinerant merchant license, however, was intended to be of a temporary nature. One suggestion was to develop a new ordinance that would provide for an accessory use. Under that scenario, the property owner would need to request the accessory/secondary use and seek a site plan review.
To allay any feelings that Ordinance No. 2006-07 was directed specifically toward a particular business (i.e. the hotdog vendor), Commissioner Price, once again, recommended that it be tabled until a second ordinance providing for accessory uses could be prepared, reviewed by the Planning and Zoning Board and both ordinances brought back to the Town Commission.
Commissioner Walters provided an historical perspective of the itinerant merchant ordinance, stating that it was first adopted in 1992 before anyone currently serving on the town commission was in office. He questioned the need for the ordinance in the first place noting that a request to open a convenience store within the town limits was denied in the past. The hotdog vendor was a convenience store type of use. The commissioner also mentioned that he heard that the gasoline station where the hotdog vendor was located was in the process of improving its property and that it might seek permission to sell food at this site.
Mayor Stacey opened the public
hearing. Bruce Black, the hotdog vendor and holder of an itinerant merchant
license in the Town of Melbourne Beach, addressed the Town Commission. He
stated that he was advised by town officials in the past (i.e. town manager,
town planner, and town attorney) to apply for an itinerant merchant license for
his hotdog vending business. There was nothing in the ordinance that prevented
him from renewing his license every 90 days which he had done for over a year. He
read into the record a 2005 memorandum from Ed Washburn, former town planning
consultant, which stated that nothing in the Town Code prohibited a license renewal nor addressed how long an
itinerant merchant could stay in one place. He felt that the proposed ordinance
was a personal affront against his small business and could, in fact, put him
out of business in
John Walker favored grandfathering the hotdog vendor at his current location with reasonable stipulations and be done with it.
John Gallagher cautioned the Town Commission about health department concerns when a vendor was handling food to be sold to the public and suggested that such a vendor be restricted to a specific area. Vice-Mayor Wilson responded that the Brevard County Health Department was responsible for ensuring hygienic practices. The Town controlled the type of businesses that it permitted.
Pete Krumio and Joyce Futch spoke in favor of allowing the hotdog vendor to continue operations at his present location. It was a popular place of business that was frequented by town’s people.
Tom Shaw saw no problem with the current operation nor did he see that the town had a problem with itinerant merchants in general. He renewed his business license annually; an itinerant merchant renewed his every 90 days. He saw no reason to go forward with the proposed ordinance and felt that it was unfortunate that the Commission was taking time to deal with a future “what if” situation instead of the problems at hand.
No one else wished to speak and the public hearing was closed.
Commissioner Price moved to table Ordinance No. 2006-07 to the Town
Commission’s August 16, 2006 regular meeting in order that it could be brought
back with a grandfather provision and/or a second ordinance providing for
accessory uses. Mayor Stacey seconded the motion and it carried with
Commissioner Walters voting no.
At the Commission’s request, Town
Manager Bursick related his knowledge as to future conceptual plans for the
service station at the corner of
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The resolution maintained existing rental rates for residents, however, proposed a different rate for non residents as they did not pay ad valorem taxes to operate public facilities in the town. The resolution also exempted, by name, a number of organizations from paying the usage fee and damage deposit (e.g. Boy Scouts, Garden Club, Volunteer Fire Department, etc.).
Vice-Mayor Wilson moved to adopt Resolution No. 2006-07 with the
addition of the Rotary Club to the list of organizations that were exempt from
usage fees and deposits. Commissioner Walters seconded the motion and it
carried unanimously.
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Attorney Sack read RESOLUTION NO. 2006-08 OF THE TOWN OF MELBOURNE BEACH, BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA, ESTABLISHING A POLICY FOR THE USE AND RENTAL OF THE MELBOURNE BEACH COMMUNITY CENTER AND PAVILION IN RYCKMAN PARK; SETTING FEES AND DEPOSITS; PROVIDING FOR WAIVER OF SAID FEES AND DEPOSITS; PROVIDING FOR CERTAIN PROCEDURES FOR USE AND RENTAL OF THE FACILITIES; PROVIDING FOR REPEAL OF CERTAIN INCONSISTENT RESOLUTIONS; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE by title only.
Vice-Mayor Wilson moved to adopt Resolution No. 2006-08, again with the
inclusion of the Rotary Club as an exempt organization. Commissioner Walters
seconded the motion and it carried on an all yes vote.
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Old Business
The only item was a recommended change to Section 9.07 of the Policy and Administrative Procedures Manual related to the accrual and use of compensatory time for exempt and non –exempt employees. Specifically, the proposed change provided that compensatory time could not be used if an employee was serving a suspension without pay. The maximum accrual of compensatory time for exempt employees was capped at 96 hours.
Commissioner Walters moved to approve the recommended change to the
compensatory time policy as presented by the Town Manager. Vice-Mayor Wilson
seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.
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New Business
The first item was consideration of the employment agreement between the Town of Melbourne Beach and James D. Bursick, Town Manager. Several aspects of the agreement were clarified. First there was no compensatory time accrual; in lieu of compensatory time, the manager received 80 hours of administrative leave annually. The manager received three weeks of paid vacation annually (i.e. 15 work days) and 12 days of sick leave annually. As to membership in professional organizations, Commissioner Walters asked that membership and/or attendance at conferences be approved by the Town Commission in advance of the expenditure of funds.
Along this line, Mayor Stacey
recommended that the Town Manager attend the upcoming Florida League of Cities
(FLC) annual conference in
Effective
Commissioner Price moved to approve the employment agreement for Town
Manager James D. Bursick as presented. Mayor Stacey seconded the motion and it
carried on an all yes vote.
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Town Manager Bursick asked that revisions to Chapter 19, Disciplinary Action, of the Policies and Procedures Manual be deferred to the next meeting. He wanted to re-examine the policy as it related to the use or prohibition of use of compensatory time by non-exempt employees placed on suspension without pay or administrative leave without pay.
Vice-Mayor Wilson moved to table the item as requested. Commissioner
Price seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.
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Next was a budget amendment transferring $1,000 from the Holiday Pay line item and $1,100 from the Education Incentive Pay line item to the Police Department Salaries account. Referencing the Town Manager’s June 14th memorandum to the Town Commission, the purpose of this transfer was to provide funds for the payment of compensatory time to David Syrkus, former police chief. Mr. Syrkus was on administrative leave without pay and had asked to receive payment for his compensatory time during this period. Andy Hamont, the town’s labor attorney, was of the opinion that his request for payment of compensatory time should be granted.
Commissioner Price moved to approve the budget amendment as presented.
Mayor Stacey seconded the motion and it carried on an all yes vote.
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Next was a recommendation to
approve new travel reimbursement rates as adopted by the State Legislature
during its 2006 session. The mileage reimbursement rate increased from 29 cents
to 44.5 cents per mile. Per diem and meal allowances were modified as follows:
Per diem from $50 to $80 per day; breakfast from $3 to $6; lunch from $6 to $11;
and dinner from $12 to $19. The new rates were effective as of
Mayor Stacey proposed granting each commissioner an additional $60 in salary each month to cover local mileage expenses and thus eliminate the need for travel expense reports. He cited the large increases in gasoline prices as justification. Under his proposal, each commissioner would receive the $60 increase whether or not they incurred mileage expenses. There was no further discussion on the mayor’s proposal at this time. It would be evaluated further during budget workshops.
Commissioner Walters wanted to clarify that in those instances where an event registration fee included a meal (e.g. banquet), that a town official would not be entitled to reimbursement for that particular meal. Nor should a town official be entitled to reimbursement for a meal that was paid for by someone else. It was a consensus of the Town Commission to revise this language in the policies manual to make the above-stated intent as clear as possible.
Commissioner Walters moved to approve the increased reimbursement rates
(per
Jean Marshall asked about the reimbursement policy for valet parking and tips. Commissioner Walters responded by reading the applicable policy section. Marty Remark commented on the need for town officials to be able to produce receipts for business-related travel.
The motion carried unanimously.
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The next item was Commissioner Walters’ request to limit the number of town commissioners attending the Florida League of Cities (FLC) annual conference to the mayor and the Town’s FLC representative. He noted that two commissioners were up for re-election in November. Would it benefit the town to expend several thousand dollars for them to attend this conference if they were not re-elected? Contacts that one might make at the conference were of no good if the commissioner no longer sat on the commission. Instead, the funds could be used for something that would benefit the town as a whole, such as playground equipment. Commissioner Price noted that there was already a limitation on travel expenses that could be incurred by individual commission members. Commissioner Walters withdrew the item, noting that Commissioner Guglietta was absent.
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The final item of New Business was a written apology from Commissioner Guglietta to the general public and Town Commission for his use of inappropriate language and lack of proper decorum at the May 17, 2006 Town Commission meeting. Speaking from the audience, Jean Marshall stated her opinion that it was ridiculous to read an apology. She suggested that it be placed on the Town’s bulletin board.
Town Clerk Burke read the
following apology into the record: “I
would like to apologize to the residents of the Town of
Commissioner Walters stated that he was not accepting the apology.
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Town Manager’s Report
The Town Commission acknowledged receipt of the following reports from the Town Manager: (1) Action Item Report; (2) Police Department Monthly Activity Report – May 2006; (3) Volunteer Fire Department Monthly Report – May 2006; (4) Building Department Report – May 2006; (5) Financial Report – May 2006; and (6) Public Works Report – May 2006.
Town Manager Bursick advised that
The southerly town limit sign on
Town Manager Bursick met with the contractor on the final payment for town hall. Outstanding issues were being addressed and he hoped to have this item on the next regular meeting agenda.
The manager would present the budget schedule within the next few weeks. Generally, he planned to follow the same schedule that was used in prior years with budget presentation, setting of tentative millage rate, and then detailed budget workshops.
Town Manager Bursick advised that the Williams Building Committee contacted Frank Thomas as to whether or not it could make copies of the historical documents/artifacts that were in his possession. Mr. Thomas had asked for an official letter transmitting this request. It was unclear as to whether or not Mr. Thomas was offering to donate the original artifacts; if so, the town would need to decide where to keep them. The town manager was authorized to draft an official letter to Mr. Thomas for the mayor’s signature.
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At this time, Commissioner Walters brought up the matter of compensatory time payment for David Syrkus, the former police chief. Town Manager Bursick advised that the budget amendment approved earlier in the meeting provided the funds for the payment of the accrued compensatory time. Commissioner Walters did not know this was the reason for the budget amendment. There was an estimated $20,000 worth of accrued compensatory time and payment thereof was not approved by any member of the Town Commission. He was of the opinion that the town manager did not have the authority to make any compensatory time payments over 96 hours (per policy). Commissioner Walters stated that his approval of the budget amendment did not include the payment of $20,000 of compensatory time to the former chief. The commissioner went on to state other town policy relating to compensatory time, such as the fact that time sheets should state the reason for which compensatory time was earned. This had not happened in the case at hand.
Town Manager Bursick went on to relate the labor attorney’s recommendation on this matter which was that the former chief had a vested right in the accrued compensatory time as the policy in effect at the time did not address payment while on administrative leave without pay. The policy on payment of compensatory time adopted this evening could not be applied retroactively. Mr. Syrkus made a request for payment of his accrued compensatory time which was being paid on a bi-weekly basis while he was on administrative leave without pay. Again, the labor attorney could not find any reason for the town not to pay him.
Jean Marshall did not feel that the budget transfer, as it appeared on the agenda, made it clear to the public that payment of compensatory time was the reason for the budget transfer.
Mayor Stacey proposed paying the former chief for all of his accrued compensatory time in a lump sum in exchange for his resignation versus being paid 40 hours of compensatory time per week. Town Manager Bursick could put this proposal on the table, however, saw no incentive for the former chief to resign as a court appearance was scheduled for the following week. There was no commission action on this matter.
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The town manager announced that Waste Management planned to make a presentation at the Town Commission meeting in July on the automated garbage collection service. If approved by the Town Commission, an amendment to the franchise agreement would be necessary.
He was continuing to look into the Florida Main Street Program. This was an extensive grant application; the deadline was past for current year funding. The manager advised of the requirement to have a part-time manager for this program and was investigating whether or not a portion of his time or the town planner’s time could be used for this purpose.
Town Clerk Burke reported on election deadlines. Ballot information was to be submitted the day after candidate qualifying ended which was August 29th. Along this line, Town Manager Bursick announced the tentative schedule for hearing the height ordinance.
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Town Commission Reports
As to the town clerk’s resignation, Mayor Stacey asked the Town Manager whether or not he knew of anyone who might be willing to work on a temporary basis. The mayor also asked that the commissioners consider allowing the next town clerk to work under the manager rather than the town commission.
Vice-Mayor Wilson asked about the town’s exposure to liability in allowing the hotdog vendor to continue to sell his product at the current location. If there was a traffic accident at this intersection, could the town be named in a law suit? Town Attorney Sack responded that municipalities had a great deal of legal protection in this regard. Towns tended to incur liability when then took on a specific duty and then failed to perform that duty. Towns with seashore within their jurisdiction had additional exposure to liability.
Commissioner Walters asked about training for board members, interim town attorney, and vacancy for deputy town clerk. Town Manager Bursick responded. Attorney Sack provided training on the Sunshine Law. As to the deputy clerk position, the managner was going to advertise for the position.
Commissioner Walters then asked
about the requirements for posting a meeting, specifically, whether or not it
was acceptable for two commissioners to officially post the time that they
would be discussing a given subject at a public place.
Referring to the Fire Department’s monthly report, Commissioner Walters asked for detail on where incidents occurred.
The Town Commission thanked Town Clerk Burke for her services.
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Adjournment
Commissioner Walters moved to adjourn. Vice-Mayor Wilson seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at
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William G. Stacey, Mayor
ATTEST:
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Karan J. Rounsavall
Interim Town Clerk